Clear Money Guide
What this state guide covers
A quick view of the questions, practical details and source notes below.
Updated August 3, 2026. Quick answer: Minnesota has a transfer on death deed under that name. It must be recorded before the grantor owner’s death, and it is unusually explicit about naming more than one beneficiary and choosing the form of ownership between them.
Recording is the operative act
A transfer on death deed is valid if the deed is recorded in a county in which at least a part of the real property described in the deed is located and is recorded before the death of the grantor owner upon whose death the conveyance or transfer is effective.
— Minn. Stat. § 507.071 (Transfer on death deeds) (subsections joined for readability; no words added)
Minnesota adds a wrinkle worth knowing: if the property is registered (Torrens) property, the statute sets out separate treatment. Minnesota still has a substantial amount of Torrens land, and it is not interchangeable with abstract property here.
Multiple beneficiaries, and the form of ownership between them
A transfer on death deed may designate multiple grantee beneficiaries to take title as joint tenants, as tenants in common or in any other form of ownership or tenancy that is valid under the laws of this state.
— Minn. Stat. § 507.071 (Transfer on death deeds)
This matters more than it looks. Naming three children as joint tenants means the survivors take everything if one dies; as tenants in common, that child’s share goes to their own estate. Leaving it unstated is how families end up in a dispute the deed was meant to prevent.
It can name a trust
Minnesota permits transfer to the trustee of an inter vivos trust even if the trust is revocable, to a testamentary trustee, or to any other entity legally qualified to hold title.
Revocation
Subdivision 10 governs revocation and modification. As everywhere, the mechanism is a recorded instrument — not destroying a copy, and not a later will.
Recording is what makes a Minnesota deed work
Minnesota uses the name transfer on death deed, and section 507.071 makes recording the operative act, so a signed deed sitting in a drawer does nothing at all. LawDepot builds one, including the multiple beneficiary and form of ownership choices the statute is unusually explicit about. Take it to the county recorder in a county where the property sits.
LawDepot prices a single document at $7.50 to $119, and its category subscriptions start at $107.88 a year, with the all-documents plan at $155.88 a year (LawDepot pricing page, read 2026-09-02).
Create a transfer on death deed
LawDepot pays us a commission if you buy through this link, and it costs you nothing extra. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Affiliate Disclosure.
What a transfer on death deed does not do
- It moves one parcel, not an estate. It avoids probate on that property. Bank accounts, vehicles and everything else are untouched, so it is not a substitute for a will.
- It does not take effect until death, so the owner keeps full control — and can sell, mortgage or revoke without the beneficiary’s agreement or knowledge.
- It does not clear debts. A mortgage, lien or judgment against the property passes with it.
- It does not decide what happens if the beneficiary dies first. That is governed by statute and is one of the most common surprises.
Honest gaps
We have quoted section 507.071 on recording, multiple beneficiaries and permitted transferees. The subdivisions on Torrens property mechanics, on the effect of a beneficiary predeceasing, and on creditor claims are referenced but not reproduced. This is the statute, not legal advice. Deed drafting, title and recording practice vary by county, and a property with a mortgage, co-owners or a disputed title is one to take to a lawyer in the state.
Source note. Read from https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/507.071 on 2026-08-04.
Related: transfer on death deeds by state · how it compares with a living trust · what it actually avoids.
General information drawn from state statutes and official state or court forms, not legal advice. These instruments are governed by the law of the state where the property sits or the document is signed, and formalities differ from state to state — execution, witnessing and recording requirements are the parts that void a document when they are missed. Your own state’s current statute governs.
A transfer-on-death deed keeps one asset out of probate; whether the rest of the estate has to go through it is a separate test, and the answer is on when probate is required in Minnesota, which gives Minnesota’s qualifying value for the small-estate route and what that route does not reach.